Startups taught me more about life and business than I ever could imagine

Thread: 20 tips I wish I could give to my 20 year old self

Startups are simple:

There are good times and bad times

Good times: enjoy the ride
Bad times: enjoy the ride
Beware of pessimistic people

Pessimism is the worst disease
Professional lies we tell ourselves:

1. Your email inbox is getting stuff done
2. A full calendar is positive
3. Big meetings are the answer

You know better
FAANG give you credentials
Startups give you education
Bob Dylan on the common sense behind criticism

"Don't criticize what you can't understand."

There is nothing easier than being a critic

A tremendous waste of energy and bad vibe
On the life at a startup:

I’ve never met a startup that has gone according to plan

Buckle up
Emotional decisions kill startups, careers and your day

How to avoid making emotional decisions:

1. Wait

Point: If you can wait, wait
Be kind to yourself

A recipe for failure:

1) Being compulsively critical
2) Being massively unforgiving

Being too hard on yourself is a hindrance to growth

Reminder: you are enough
The greatest productivity trick:

Listening to people you respect

You won’t be able to get them out of your head

They will make you better

Tip: the internet makes it easy to find and listen to these people
Elon Musk on what it takes to change the world

"I could either watch it happen, or be part of it."

Say less, Elon
Good habits are life's magic pill
Reading fast: defeats the point of reading

Read slow to really learn
A sweet illusion:

You are in control
A true sign of success:

Someone who doesn’t keep track of failures
Unlearn: filling your life with possessions
Learn: filling your mind with mastery

Everyone could become a master

Literally, everyone
Free:

- Exercise
- Go for a walk
- Being in nature
- Sharing knowledge
- Learning from others
- Listening to others
- Asking for help
- Being kind
- Positive attitude
- Twitter

The amount of growth you can experience for free is massive
Expensive:

- Spending time with the wrong people
- Populating feeds with toxic content
- Spending too long at a job
- Spending not enough time at a job
- Chasing startups for the money
Product/market fit happens when you least expect it
Realization:

People don’t support your company’s vision. They support their own vision of the world
#1 behavior of successful people:

Thinking clearly
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More from GREG ISENBERG

More from All

1. Mini Thread on Conflicts of Interest involving the authors of the Nature Toilet Paper:
https://t.co/VUYbsKGncx
Kristian G. Andersen
Andrew Rambaut
Ian Lipkin
Edward C. Holmes
Robert F. Garry

2. Thanks to @newboxer007 for forwarding the link to the research by an Australian in Taiwan (not on

3. K.Andersen didn't mention "competing interests"
Only Garry listed Zalgen Labs, which we will look at later.
In acknowledgements, Michael Farzan, Wellcome Trust, NIH, ERC & ARC are mentioned.
Author affiliations listed as usual.
Note the 328 Citations!
https://t.co/nmOeohM89Q


4. Kristian Andersen (1)
Andersen worked with USAMRIID & Fort Detrick scientists on research, with Robert Garry, Jens Kuhn & Sina Bavari among


5. Kristian Andersen (2)
Works at Scripps Research Institute, which WAS in serious financial trouble, haemorrhaging 20 million $ a year.
But just when the first virus cases were emerging, they received great news.
They issued a press release dated November 27, 2019:

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This is NONSENSE. The people who take photos with their books on instagram are known to be voracious readers who graciously take time to review books and recommend them to their followers. Part of their medium is to take elaborate, beautiful photos of books. Die mad, Guardian.


THEY DO READ THEM, YOU JUDGY, RACOON-PICKED TRASH BIN


If you come for Bookstagram, i will fight you.

In appreciation, here are some of my favourite bookstagrams of my books: (photos by lit_nerd37, mybookacademy, bookswrotemystory, and scorpio_books)